Shelf-support for bins

ABSTRACT

A REMOVABLE SHELF-SUPPORT BRACKET WHICH INTEGRALLY DEFINES SPACED MOUNTING FINGERS AND AN ELONGATED ANGLE BRACKET FOR VERTICAL SUPPORT AND LATERAL CONFINEMENT OF THE SHELF IS PROVIDED FOR SELECTIVE CONNECTION BETWEEN A PAIR OF UPRIGHT SHEET METAL POSTS, EACH OF WHICH POSTS IS PROVIDED WITH A PLURALITY OF VERTICALLY ALIGNED SLOTS ADAPTED FOR SELECTIVELY RECEIVING THE MOUNTING FINGERS OF THE BRACKET.

Sept. 20, 1971 H. H. KLEIN 3,606,227

SHELF-SUPPORT FOR BINS Filed June 4, 1970 INVIiN'IUR.

44 HERBERT H. KLEIN ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,606,227 SHELF-SUPPORT FOR BINS Herbert H. Klein, Arlington Heights, 11]., assignor t0 Unarco Industries, Inc., Chicago, Ill. Filed June 4, 1970, Ser. No. 43,343 Int. Cl. E06b 7/28 US. Cl. 248-243 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A removable shelf-support bracket which integrally defines spaced mounting fingers and an elongated angle bracket for vertical support and lateral confinement of the shelf is provided for selective connection between a pair of upright sheet metal posts, each of which, posts is provided with a plurality of vertically aligned slots adapted for selectively receiving the mounting fingers of the bracket.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to shelf-supporting devices, and more particularly, to removable brackets for connection to slotted upright posts for supporting a shelf therebetween.

An object of the present invention is to provide a shelfsupporting bracket that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and which is easily manipulable for insertion in and removal from slotted upright posts, and which will firmly engage the upright posts to provide a secure support for a shelf which is supported by the bracket.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood through consideration of the following.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a storage-bin construction comprising a number of spaced vertical posts arranged in pairs bordering opposite sides of a bin-space. Each pair of posts provides a flat side bordering the bin-space and a series of apertures in the corner of the post adjacent the bin-space and distally of the other post.

A shelf supporting bracket is provided for selective attachment or detachment to the pair of posts without aid of any fasteners. The bracket is an integral sheet metal member shaped to provide an elongated planar segment of a length to bridge the minimum spacing of the pair of posts and the width of the two posts between the distal corners thereof in which the series of apertures are located.

inturned flange means are provided at the lower edge of the planar segment defining a support for a shelf and attachment finger means are provided at each end of the elongated planar segment for insertion into and retention in an aperture on one of the posts. Each attachment finger means includes a neck bent from the planar segment in a direction opposite to the flange means and of a length substantially equal to the thickness of the material of the post. The attachment finger means is shaped to prevent inadvertent withdrawal of the finger means when the bracket is loaded during support of a shelf.

A more detailed explanation of the invention is provided in the following description and claims, and is illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view, partially broken, of a storage rack constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a removable bracket used in the storage rack shown in FIG. 1;

3,606,227 Patented Sept. 20, 1971 FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary, cross-sectional view taken along the line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary, cross-sectional view similar to the view of FIG. 3, showing the bracket in the process of being attached to the post;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary, cross-sectional view similar to the view of FIG. 4, showing the bracket in the process of being attached to the post, in a further stage of connection than the stage of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the bracket of FIG. 2, prior to bending to form the FIG. 2 configuration, and showing the bend lines as dashed lines.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 1, therein is shown four upright posts 10, 12, 14 and 16 each having a rectangular cross-sectional configuration and defining a number of equally spaced, vertically aligned slots or apertures 18 at each corner thereof. A shelf 20 is supported by brackets 22, 24 which extend between posts 12, 14 and 10, 16 respectively.

The specific construction of the bracket forming the illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown most clearly in FIG. 2. Bracket 22 comprises an integral sheet metal member which is bent to form a vertical planar seg ment 28, horizontal inturned flange means 26 at the lower edge of the planar segment 28 defining a shelf-supporting surface, and attachment finger means 30 and 32 extending in a direction opposite to the extending direction of flange means 26 and essentially lying in planes that are perpendicular to the planes of flange means 26 and planar segment 28. Finger means 30 and 32 are parallel to each other and identical in configuration.

Planar segment 28 is long enough to bridge the spacing between two posts and the width of the two posts between the distal corners thereof in which the series of apertures are located. The rear surface areas 34 and 36 adjacent the ends of vertical member 28 abut vertical sides of the posts to which bracket 22 is connected.

Finger means 30 comprises a neck portion 38 having a horizontal length that is at least as great as the thickness of the sheet metal from which the upright posts are formed, an upwardly extending finger portion 42 and a downwardly extending finger portion 44. The span of upper edge 46 and lower edge 48 of neck 38 is smaller than the length of slot 18 and the span of the upper edge 50 and the lower edge 48 of neck 38 is greater than the slot length. However, the span of upper edge 46 and lower edge 52 of finger portion 44 is less than the length of the slot. The edge 56 of finger portion 42 which faces the inside wall of one side of the upright post and the edge 58 of lower finger portion 44 which also faces the same inside wall are tapered outwardly so that finger portions 42 and 44 can be pivoted to enter slot 18. The finger portions 42 and 44 will be retained inside the post as a result of the aforesaid dimensions.

The insertion of bracket 22 into slots 18 can be clearly understood by reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. In FIG. 4, it is seen that upper portion 42 is placed into slot 18 and the finger means 30 is pivoted in the counterclockwise direction (with respect to FIGS. 4 and 5) so that lower portion 44 enters the slot, as shown in FIG. 5. When finger portions 42 and 44 are inside the upright post, the bracket is lowered so that edge 48 of neck 38 rests upon the surface refining the bottom of slot 18, as shown in FIG. 3. It can be seen that one side of a shelf 20 can be readily supported on the top surface of flange means 26 once the bracket is in place within the upright posts as indicated in FIGS. 1 and 3.

Referring to FIG. 6, the bracket can be very simply constructed from an integral stamping 60. It can be seen that the inturned flange means 26 is smaller in length than 3 the distance between necks 38 and 40. Stamping 60 is bent on the dashed lines of FIG. 6 to form the configuration illustrated in FIG. 2, and in this manner an effective, simply constructed shelf-supporting bracket is formed.

Although an illustrative embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it is to be understood that various substitutions and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a storage-bin construction that includes a pinrality of spaced vertical posts arranged in pairs bordering opposite sides of a bin-space, each pair of posts providing a fiat side bordering the bin-space and a series of vertically elongated and unobstructed apertures in the corner of the post adjacent the binspace and distally of the other post, and a shelf-support bracket for selective attachment or detachment to said pair of posts without aid of any fasteners, the improved shelf-support bracket comprising an integral sheet metal member shaped to provide an elongated planar segment of a length to bridge the minimum spacing of the pair of posts and the width of the two posts between the distal corners thereof in which the said series of apertures are located, said elongated planar segment being adapted to engage and abut said flat side of both posts, transverse flange means at the lower edge of said planar segment defining a support for a shelf, and attachment finger means at each end of said elongated planar segment for insertion into and retention in an aperture on one of said posts, each said attachment finger means including a neck bent from said planar segment in a direction opposite to the direction of projection of said flange means and of a length substantially equal to the thickness of the material of the post through which the aperture is formed, and oppositely extending upper and lower finger portions in the plane of said neck at the end of said neck distal from said planar segment, the span of the upper finger portion and neck being greater than the height of an aperture, but the span between the neck and the lower finger portion being less than the height of an aperture to permit insertion of the finger means through an aperture and preventing inadvertent withdrawal of the finger means when the bracket is loaded during support of a shelf and the edge surfaces of both the upper and lower finger portions of each attachment finger means that are positioned to face the inside wall of the post being tapered along their length in a direction away from said planar segment.

2. An improved shelf-support bracket as defined in claim 1, wherein the inturned flange means is a length that is less than the distance between the necks.

3. An improved shelf-support bracket as defined in claim 1, wherein the flange means is located in a plane that intersects the finger means intermediate the ends of the finger means but closer to the lower end thereof.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,678,793 5/1954 Brochstein 108108X 3,217,894 11/1965 Shewell 211182X FOREIGN PATENTS 782,416 4/1968 Canada 108108 1,026,237 3/1958 Germany 211-177 J. FRANKLIN FOSS, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 108-110; 211148 

